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A ceremony was held Tuesday at the Supreme Court of Queens County in Jamaica honoring the late Judge Moses M. Weinstein who died last year at the age of 95.

Weinstein, who originally hailed from the Lower East Side in Manhattan, left behind a legacy of community dedication and public service in Queens that will not soon be forgotten.

A late-bloomer to politics whose political career began at the age of 46, Weinstein compensated for the late-start with his leadership and flawless election record.

He was re-elected five times to the New York State Assembly, where he held the position of Assembly leader as well as acting speaker.

Weinstein also served as chairman of the Queens Democratic Party from 1962 to 1969.

In 1965, Weinstein was a key player in a proposed re-allocation of Assembly seats in face of unprecedented population growth in city suburbs like Westchester and Nassau County. The redistricting plan drew significant protest from both republicans and democrats in Albany, yet Weinstein and his allies never lost their focus in the fight to give more voting power to constituents in the city and the city’s surrounding suburbs.

As Assembly leader, Weinstein was given the final word in political debates – a benefit of the job title that he took full advantage of. His quick wit and insightful references during debate afforded him a fierce edge over his opponents in Albany and earned him recognition as a political “pistol” and “cherry bomb.”

With a political career that spanned over a decade, Weinstein left his mark on the Assembly in Albany as a progressive leader. Yet locally, he is perhaps known best for his service in the judicial sector.

He began working in the courts when he was granted a 14-year term as State Supreme Court justice in Queens – a position he won in 1969.

Weinstein spent the last decade of his career as an appointee to the Second Judicial Department of the Appellate Division of the State Supreme Court. In one memorable case, Weinstein was seated in a panel that voted to restrict television and newspaper cameras at a murder trial in Howard Beach, effectively protecting due process for the four teenage defendants.

A member of the Appellate Division, Weinstein held jurisdiction in Queens, Brooklyn, Staten Island as well as areas of Long Island and Westchester.

He stepped down from his position when he reached the mandatory retirement age in 1989.

Always a proponent for the city community he grew up in, Weinstein in his lifetime sponsored measures to create the New York State Crime Victims Compensation Board as well as the Empire State Development Corporation – a public authority created in the 60s to reduce urban decay that is still in effect today.

Weinstein left the community with a familial legacy as well. His son Jeremy was appointed Administrative Judge of the Civil Term to the Supreme Court of Queens in 2007.